WILLIAMSBURG— A hard hat tour on April 15 showed off some of the new theming and updates being done in preparation for “Verbolten: Forbidden Turn.”
In the original story of “Verbolten,” guests were lined up to take a motor tour run by twins Gerta and Gunter Schwartzwald. On the ride, guests experience the Black Forest that leads the car onto the path, which showed one of three randomized story lines inside the event building: The Spirit of the Forest, a Lightning Storm, or the Big Bad Wolf.
In “Verbolten: Forbidden Turn,” the motor tour company is no longer run by the twins but Frau Hexel, the new host of this Black Forest tour company. With the help of her trusted companion, Broom (spelling to be determined), guests are repeatedly reminded to “don’t turn right,” after embarking on their tour.
One of the key major adds is animatronics. Several are featured throughout the ride, both in the queue and on the ride itself.
“There’s lighting, there’s other things you can do, but animatronics was I think, important because there’s a character in this story,” said Busch Gardens Williamsburg’s Park President, Kevin Lembke. “It was really important to bring her to essentially bring her to life because she was essential to what’s happening throughout the ride. So animatronics were ultimately the best way to make that happen.”
The queue line will feature three key visuals when it is completed. The first being an animatronic of Frau Hexel that will sit behind the ticket desk in the visitor center portion of the line. In addition to telling guests not to turn right, she will also be repeatedly calling for her friend, Broom, who just isn’t coming for some reason.
The second is located in Broom’s Closet, which was formerly Gunter’s office. In this area, Broom will also be visible to guests as an animatronic. The animatronic will be trying and unable to get to Hexel, who is calling for him in the previous area.
The final major addition will be in the loading and unloading zone for the ride. The station will be the same for the most part, with it still being themed as a garage where the cars are picked up and dropped off. The big change will be the inclusion of three large windows, which will be interactive with each other, where a variety of gags will be shown randomly.
After surviving the Black Forest, the guest will go through Hexel’s house in order to pick up souvenirs and any ride photos the guest might want.
The indoor portion of the ride will still keep the same signature drop as the original “Verbolten.” This time, there will be large tree branches featured that are designed to be similar to finger tendrils. These branches will also have a light effect designed to mimic lightning. All 14 of the branches will be placed around the drop track.
The launch into the area is the only theming that will be reused, according to Busch Gardens. There will also be more trees dispersed throughout and a tree mouth that the coaster will travel through.
The final detail is a second animatronic of Hexel holding Broom over the drop, saying, “I told you not to turn right,” accompanied by my lighting effects before the drop track goes into the ride’s plunge over the water.
No official open date has been announced yet for the revamped “Verbolten: Forbidden Turn” beyond the spring estimation. For more information, visit the official Busch Gardens website.
